


mirror, mirror

by LotusPierTopBi



Series: reflection verse [1]
Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternative Dai-nana-han | Team 7 (Naruto), Author Open to Suggestions for Part II and in General, Canon-Typical Violence, Child Neglect, Cliche, Extended Families, Gen, Hatake Kakashi Is Trying, Hatake Kakashi is Bad at Feelings, Japanese Mythology & Folklore, Male-Female Friendship, Morally Ambiguous Character, Not Beta Read, One-Sided Haruno Sakura/Uchiha Sasuke, POV Original Female Character, Pairings Undecided and Not the Focus, Sato Keiho Did Not Sign Up For This, Sato Keiho Has A Tragic Backstory, Self-Indulgent, Self-Insert, Slice of Life Elements, Team Bonding, Though She Thinks It Has A Happy Ending, Uchiha Sasuke Has Issues, Uzumaki Naruto Needs a Hug, oc-insert
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-16
Updated: 2021-02-18
Packaged: 2021-03-18 04:42:16
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,347
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29483898
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LotusPierTopBi/pseuds/LotusPierTopBi
Summary: A cliché is always a fun way to destroy someone's life. Sato Keiho's peaceful life is destroyed by being selected instead of Sakura to round up Team Seven and now she is stuck picking up the emotionally unhealthy pieces of it.
Relationships: Hatake Kakashi & Original Female Character(s), Original Female Character(s) & Original Male Character(s), Uchiha Sasuke & Original Female Character(s), Uzumaki Naruto & Original Female Character(s)
Series: reflection verse [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2169252
Comments: 15
Kudos: 156
Collections: A Collection of Beloved Inserts





	1. Arc 1 - ⊀The Cliché⊁

“Now then, next is Team Seven. Uzumaki Naruto! Sato Keiho! And Uchiha Sasuke!”

Keiho’s whole world shattered at that statement. She barely noted how the blond boy and pink haired girl in front of her simultaneously drooped in apparent defeat. Her mind was too busy locked up unable to move at the shock it had just experienced. 

_Uzumaki Naruto! Sato Keiho! And Uchiha Sasuke!_

_Uzumaki Naruto!_ **_Sato Keiho_** _! And Uchiha Sasuke!_

**_Sato Keiho_** _!_ **_Sato Keiho_** _!_ **_Sato Keiho_** _!_

The announcement kept repeating as she sat, frozen, not taking in the other assignments that she’d already long known. 

It couldn’t be. That made no sense. She hadn’t done anything to stand out. She hadn’t changed a **_single damn thing_**.

“Keiho-san,” a soft voice asked and a hand touched her elbow. Keiho turned feeling strangely light-headed, to meet ashy gray eyes. They widened as the boy took in her expression. “Keiho-san! What’s wrong?”

Before she could answer they were interrupted by the same voice ringing on repeat in the back of her mind.

“And finally, Team Nine. Hamasaki Rokuro. Haruno Sakura. Akiyama Shigeru.”

“Yes!” Shigeru called out, straightening at the sound of his name, and turning instinctively to face their teacher. As he looked away, Keiho felt her whole body going cold. The announcement had been another strike to the foundation of her world.

_Team Nine. Hamasaki Rokuro. Haruno Sakura. Akiyama Shigeru._

_Hamasaki Rokuro._ **_Haruno Sakura_** _. Akiyama Shigeru._

**_Haruno Sakura._**

_What have I done? What have I done!_ The back of her throat burned and she felt the hand on her elbow tighten as she swayed slightly.

“ _Keiho-san_!” Shigeru said, more sharp than she’d ever heard him so concerned. Worried about her and looking confused, questioning. 

She could taste acid on the back of her tongue. She didn’t have any answers. Everything was wrong. _Everything was_ **_wrong_**.

She slammed her hands on her desk, shoving herself to her shaky feet. The sound and sudden movement drew attention to her and she noticed the loud shouting when it cut off. Uzumaki Naruto-- _her teammate,_ **_her teammate_** \--was also standing, turned halfway around to look at her with wide blue eyes. 

“Eh?” he said, voice high and utterly confused. 

She looked passed him to Iruka, who seemed just as surprised by her actions.

“Bath...bathroom,” she said and felt her stomach twist. She covered her mouth with one hand at the first gagging sensation. Naruto, directly in front of her, scrambled away frantically to crawl onto the desk in front of him. He overshot and tripped, screaming as he landed on the boy in the next row who began shouting angrily.

Iruka nodded and that was all she needed to rip her arm out of Shigeru’s grip and **_flee_**.

⊀~⊁

Sato Keiho had remembered her first life when she was nine years old. 

The shock of her uncle dying so abruptly, so horrifyingly and seeing her mother break down in her stepfather’s arms had shaken her. A memory had come loose, of the first time she’d seen her mother cry in her first life. It was just one confusing trickle of an image, but it had been enough to break the dam that held her memories back and soon Sato Keiho was crying, bawling in her equally distraught mother’s arms as her mind throbbed and soul shook with the sudden flood of a whole new ( _old_ ) life battering itself into her.

She’d handled it fairly well, considering, well _everything_. The biggest reason she didn’t spiral into a huge emotional spiral was because, as far as she could tell, her family was **the same**. True, they had different names and slightly different faces and different life experiences in some ways. It made them different people, but the base was the same. She wasn’t alone, even if she was alone with the memories of their first, tragic life. The parts just fit slightly differently into a new but still comparable whole.

Her kind, beautiful, steady mother was still the same.

Her protective, temperamental, emotional big sister was the same.

Her loud, sweet, asshole little brother was the same.

Her huffy, old-fashioned, loyal stepfather was the same.

Her sweet, sensitive, crybaby baby brother was the same.

Even her brown curls that she had always loved and her light blue eyes she’d hated and her birthmarks and round chubby face were the same. She even became nearsighted on the same day. Keiho’s life was still **_her life_**. 

She just got a _reskin_ of it.

The only major issue, once she accepted her old ( _new_ ) family was unchanged, was that Keiho also _recognized_ where she’d found herself.

_Konohagakure_. _The Village Hidden in the Leaves_. And her dumbass past self had decided to become a **_kunoichi_**. She was already two years into her education and had lost the civilian opportunities her family had set aside for her potential future. They’d used a lot of clout to get their daughter into the Academy a year late and Keiho, older in mind, but still raised in this culture, understood exactly how much that and the subsequent years of paying for her education had cost them. If she reneged on her training then her parents would have to pay the difference. 

Keiho recognized exactly how little they could afford that. But, despite the devotion and the way the show portrayed it as a lifelong commitment, shinobi were only _required_ to serve for five years. Five years and she could end her contract and retire at the ripe age of nineteen without her family having to pay anything.

Keiho had thrown herself into planning out her goals for those five years and decided that even if her initial goals failed and she had to spend them stuck in the Genin Corps she could handle it. 

Not for one moment had she considered _this_ as a potential twist though. God, it was so _cliche_. If the world wanted to ruin her peaceful life couldn’t it have the decency to get a little creative?

Keiho groaned and cupped another handful of water to splash herself with. She looked into the mirror to see a slightly damp round faced girl with a concerningly pale complexion, big light blue eyes behind oversized butterfly framed black glasses. The reflection looked thoroughly defeated. Even the cloud of thick brown curls, held back from her face by the headband looked a little more lifeless. Keiho laughed without amusement at the thought and straightened.

She took her emotions, spiraling dark, panic and slowly began to push them down, picturing a box in her mind and shoving them inside. She breathed slowly, measured and even and relaxed each muscle until her body was languid. She forced herself to smile, adjusting it in the mirror until it looked at least passably real and she couldn’t see any more fear on her face. She slapped both cheeks, the sting settling her, and smiled one last time.

Keiho was calm.

( _She wasn’t._ )

She could get through this.

( _She couldn’t_.)

She could cry about it _after_ she was home in her bed alone. 

Sensing no disagreement Keiho smiled at the compromise and it almost looked sincere. The taste of stomach acid was gone leaving only the stale taste of the sink water behind.

“Damage control,” she ordered herself, allowing any shakiness in her voice to pass now, while she was alone. “Plan A can still work.”

_Probably_.

⊀~⊁

“Keiho-san!” 

Keiho caught herself before she ran into the slightly shorter boy who jumped out at her. He also jerked back, face flushing and looking up at her intensely, before the unfamiliar expression smoothed into something soft and happy.

“You look better,” Shigeru said, in his whisper soft voice and Keiho gave him the smile she practiced, feeling a bit of genuine regret. Shigeru, despite Keiho’s firm boundaries, was always so _nice_ and _attentive_ to their pseudo-friendship. Class friends, Keiho had explained them to her frustrated mother.

“Sorry,” she said and, after a moment, reached out to grab his hand and squeezed it. His fingers were long and warm and the physical contact helped settle her rabbit heart. “Thanks for worrying. Nerves finally settled but, ah, not in the best way?”

The upturn in the question was both sheepish and a little joking and got the reaction she hoped for, making him smile and relax.

“I’m glad you’re alright then Keiho-chan,” Iruka’s voice called over and Keiho turned to find the Chunin looking over her in the same way he’d carefully examine his students after spars. Keiho smiled reassuringly when their eyes met.

“Sorry, Sensei,” she said, letting her anxiety bubble briefly to genuinely tremble. “Did I miss anything?”

He shook his head a little rueful. “You’re dismissed until this afternoon when you’ll be introduced to your Jonin commanders.”

Keiho nodded and Iruka smiled again, something almost teasing entering his expression as he looked down to Shigeru.

“Shigeru-kun insisted on waiting for you,” he said kindly and Keiho smiled, firmly oblivious. 

“And since she’s back _let's go_!” A loud voice boomed and a red and brown blur shoved himself to the forefront. The boy, scowling and impatient, crossed his arms and glared. “You’re girlfriend’s fine so food time. I’m _starving_!”

Shigeru colored instantly, sputtering. “Keiho-san isn’t my girlfriend!”

At the same time a familiar voice scolded, “Hamasaki-kun!”

Keiho’s stomach twisted as Haruno Sakura pushed her way into the fray. 

“You shouldn’t tease Akiyama-kun!” she defended, but glanced at where Keiho and Shigeru’s hands were still connected with an interested gleam in her eyes. 

Shigeru tore his hand away as if burned.

Hamasaki Rokuro rolled his eyes and shook his hand as if brushing the comment away. “I don’t care either way! I just care about the fact we got held up for her. And I told you, no Hamasaki! Rokuro! _Ro-ku-ro_!”

Sakura seemed to hesitate, before throwing herself back into it. Keiho noticed the way her hand pulled nervously at her dress’s split along the hip.

“Fine! _Rokuro_!”

The boy grinned wolfish. “See! It ain’t that hard, knew you’d learn eventually! Repetitions how you do it. Good job, Sakura-chan!”

Sakura’s face darkened. “Haruno-san to you!”

The boy rolled his eyes and looked back at Shigeru who had slowly crept close to Keiho’s side at the two explosive personalities who’d seemed to forget them.

“Come on Lover Boy,” Rokuro said, grin sharp. “Lunch time! Teammates only though!”

“Rokuro!” Sakura snarled, seeming more comfortable in her anger and the boy threw back his head and laughed at the action, disarming her instantly judging by the surprise on her face.

Shigeru, still faintly pink, seemed to decide to ignore this and turned to Keiho, a little regretfully, his pretty face troubled. Keiho’s heart went out to him, even as it trembled at the monumental divergence in front of her.

“Have fun with your team, Shigeru-san,” she told him warmly, smiling. He still looked uncertain. “I’m going to go find mine. You go ahead. See you afterwards?”

His expression eased at that and he nodded, leaning away and allowing Rokuro to reach over and start dragging him out. Sakura hesitated this time. Her green eyes looked back at Keiho, curious, but a half-mocking ‘ _Haruno-san! Move your ass!_ ’ had her face darkening and rushing out with a clenched fist and a threatening hiss. Within moments the classroom was quiet.

Keiho took a breath, proud of how steady it was and glanced up out of the corner of her eye to find Iruka looking amused and a little fond after the group.

“Loud bunch?” he said softly, catching her gaze. Keiho nodded and considered her next words.

“Sensei,” She licked her lips and cleared her throat. “Did you see where Uzumaki-san went?”

Iruka’s brown eyes widened, a miniscule reaction on his carefully friendly face, and he smiled.

⊀~⊁

Keiho found Naruto where she vaguely remembered seeing him spend his lunch countless times before. Perched on top of the Academy water tower, grumbling to himself, a convenient store sandwich in one hand, and cheeks puffed out in what could only be a pout. Keiho took a moment to steady herself and look over him. _Uzumaki Naruto_ , the **_Protagonist_**. For most of her childhood the bane of her existence to be avoided at all costs. And she had succeeded. Naruto, despite being in the same class all their years and spending one stressful semester at the same table, barely knew she existed. She doubted she even merited the “weird girl” status of Hinata.

He was the most important person in the world. She’d always known that, but for the most part Naruto kind of faded off her rader as the loud kid in class who occasionally irked her due to his interruptions. She’d maintained a firm out of sight, out of mind policy and genuinely hadn’t looked at him closely in years. 

The orange was _eye catching_ and the first thing anyone noticed, but not anywhere near as obnoxious as it seemed in 2D. Plenty of shinobi wore unique and distinct outfits, a kind of warning sign, Keiho sometimes thought. Like poisonous insects with bright patterns. The color itself wasn’t reflective, but duller in person and smooth, like water would roll off it. He’d worn it for years, oversized and baggy, clearly purchased second hand, and only now starting to fit his frame. A tracksuit and the kind of athletic wear that was more practical than most shinobi seemed to wear, at least when looking at their outfits at first glance. Keiho, from experience, knew the material wouldn’t be anywhere as thin or easily torn as the sports wear in her old life. It was layered with a thin bit of the same metallic armor that looked like thin fishnet many shinobi wore.

His face was round, but his chin was pointer than expected and with his narrow eyes and the thin scar-like birthmarks, it gave him a bit of a vulpine face. He was tan as well, a deep healthy color that came from spending most of his time outdoors and though he was scrawny and a little small for his age, he had more muscle than any twelve year old, in her past life, had any right to. It wasn’t healthy muscle though. Not the “fluffy muscle” that came from a balanced diet and routine. 

He had a bit of a neglected quality to him. The edge of abandonment and poverty and loneliness that was part of what made it so hard for Keiho to look at him. If she looked it made her want to do something. It made her empathize too much and want to wrap him up somewhere and feed him. And for years she _couldn’t_ , so she trained herself not to look.

She kind of hated herself, just a little, for discovering she could do that.

Now though she could look, had to really, and she _did_.

She saw the moment his expression began to shift. His eyes moved to the building across the street, focusing on something there and his pout turned into a scowl and then something dark and mischievous.

He’d spotted Sasuke then.

Keiho hesitated, habit more than anything kept her still and hidden, but she took a step forward still and called out, making her voice sharp and clear.

“ _Uzumaki-san!_ ”

Any darkness vanished as Naruto went from plotting to startled boy, yelping as his arms pinwheeled and he almost lost his balance. Cursing and sputtering he jumped to his feet and turned to face her, puffing up like an offended cat. It gave her enough time to leap up beside him and wait with her best smile. He stiffened at the sight of her, seeming unable to process the unexpected sight and she could visibly see the wheels turning in his head. He frowned and his brows drew together in an almost exaggerated, but definitely amusing expression.

She let out a small puff of laughter, but held back the hysterical edge that wanted to join it at the first opportunity to release her pent up emotions.

“Eh? Sano?” he looked up at her with narrowed eyes, suspicious, and having to tip his head back a bit due to the height difference.

“Sato,” she corrected gently and he blinked as she almost shoved her lunch box under his nose. “Since we’re in the same group, I thought you might want to eat together.”

Naruto _froze_.

He didn’t seem to be able to process the situation. He looked down at the lunchbox and then up to her still smiling face. His expression seemed to contort going rapidly through emotions. 

“With me?” he said finally, eyes so wide and childish, that something inside Keiho _hurt_.

“Yes,” she said firmly, sincere in this moment at least, speaking past the lump that expression made in her throat.

Sasuke seemed forgotten in this moment and after a moment of hesitation and with a careful look in his eyes. Naruto nodded, uncharacteristically quiet, and settled down as she did, watching her every move. As he tentatively accepted her splitting up the lunch with an increasingly bewildered expression that turned into something delighted at first bite, Keiho relaxed a bit. When Naruto began speaking, slowly gaining volume as he found she didn’t look away, and barely seeming to breath as he meandered his way excitedly through the possibilities of what their new sensei might teach them Keiho realized, a little stunned, that she’d succeeded. 

At least with the first step.

_Naruto, capture complete._


	2. Arc 1 - ⊀A Day of Cutscenes⊁

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A quick chapter! Not a habit I'd count on though. I'm a bit sporadic. Right now though I'm caught up in finishing this opening arc to get to more divergence and a little hooked on this story.

Naruto, it seemed, had learned nothing from his experience with Mizuki. After years of loneliness, attention, any kind but especially positive attention, was a heady thing and he was still just a kid. His wariness of her initial approach had faded a little too quickly for someone who’d grown up with internet safety being hammered in her head in one life and a ‘healthy’ shinobi paranoia in another courtesy of her mother and uncle to be comfortable seeing. Hadn't Mizuki proven that even those closest could betray you? A classmate suddenly attempting to approach you after ignoring you for years was a warning sign!

Keiho tried not to judge him too harshly for it.

It did make her want to cluck her tongue at him like some fussy aunt though.

The boy ate the food she gave him without question and talked to her happily, following her when she rose and began heading back to the classroom. He didn’t even seem to care where she was leading, caught up in describing the theoretical “cool, awesome jutsu” that their sensei would teach them. She could have, she noted in an absent way, easily drugged him and had him obediently following her out of the village or to some secondary location before anyone would have noticed. She wouldn’t, but her mind, as always, cycled through the worst case scenarios.

She frowned. 

Konohagakure emphasized trusting their teammates and that was all well and good. It was true. Learning to rely on others could be a hard but valuable lesson. She knew from experience. But Naruto was trusting, gullible even. He was also now, unfortunately, her teammate. Her responsibility, though she hadn’t wanted it. It was a little worrying to be honest. He was already an easy target as a new Genin.

And a _jinchuuriki_.

And one of the last _Uzumakis_.

Did she need to give Naruto the Stranger Danger Talk?

“–Sato-chan!” Naruto shouted in her ear. She didn’t jump, but her head snapped up a smile forming automatically. He was scowling at her, but looked relieved to have her attention again.

The name he’d called her clicked the next second. So, she’d been elevated to ‘-chan’ after one meal, huh?

“Sorry, Uzumaki-san,” she said. “I was a little distracted.”

He blinked at her, swaying slightly into her space almost imperceptibly, a small testing motion. She didn’t move away, relaxing her shoulders to open her body language and letting their arms bump together gently. Any remaining tension eased out of him at the touch and he bounced up to her.

“What about?”

“Oh, just wondering what our sensei will be like,” she said. It wasn’t quite a lie. 

She had started to consider it, around the time Naruto was rambling happily about learning jutsu that could make him invisible so he could surprise his enemies. She would be changing the dynamic. How exactly would Kakashi react to her? How was she supposed to deal with someone like Kakashi? It made her want to pull her hair just considering it.

Naruto perked up and looked at her curiously. “What do you think? They’ve got to be cool! Jonin are strong and know all kinds of jutsu! Right?”

“Most likely,” Keiho said, lips trying to twist into a smile as she thought of Kakashi’s nickname. “They’ll need to be someone fairly powerful to keep up with you and Uchiha-san. Maybe someone with a Genjutsu background for him, but they’d need to be combat oriented considering how you lean. Definitely someone ‘cool’ though.”

Naruto was silent longer than she expected and she looked down at him, a little surprised to find him looking at her a little open mouthed. When he saw her looking though he grinned widely.

“R-Right! The Old Man would have to pick the best of the best to keep up with me! Someone super strong!”

Keiho’s lips definitely twitched at the bravado and she spoke with only a hint of doting that she usually reserved for her littlest brother. It was a little cute. This flustered kid. 

“Of course, Uzumaki-san is a very strong shinobi.”

Naruto looked at her a little disbelieving, but seeing she wasn’t joking, he seemed to puff up even more. He grinned, rubbing the back of his neck, and then crossing his arms behind his head, strutting proudly. 

A little bantam cock at just a few words.

...Naruto _really_ was susceptible to praise wasn’t he? That could be just as easy to exploit as his trust. She was certainly finding it easy enough to get into the Protagonist’s good books. Though, admittedly, Keiho had plenty of practice being a lifelong people pleaser and easily adjusting to fitting the needs of others.

Keiho decided she’d shelve that concern and just drop him in front of her mother once they’d passed Kakashi’s test and wash her hands of the responsibility. Delegation was _always_ an option. And, besides, Kaa-chan would have fun putting fear into the loud little rooster of a boy. It would be a good bonding experience and lesson.

⊀~⊁

When they got to the classroom most people had returned, including Keiho’s other, much less easily swayed teammate. Iruka ordered them to sit with their teammates which saved on the usual power struggle for seating, but earned her some particularly vicious glares. She made the executive decision to play buffer. A quick decision made in the hope an armistice would last as long as possible. It would be worth fangirl ire. Even if fangirl ire was unreasonable extreme, as Naruto was a prime example of with his most recent beating.

Keiho had _concerns_ about her classmates sometimes. She’d had crushes, some embarrassing and some intense and some truly unfortunate, and she’d never acted so bloodthirsty and possessive over them. What's more any mention of her incredulous of it was dismissed as "when you fall in love" or "you'll understand when you're older". She really _couldn't_ understand the way 'romance' occurred in this world and culture sometimes. It involved a certain entitlement to someone else's body and affections that both baffled and bothered her. Then again maybe it had been the same in her world and her patently uninterested self had simply missed it.

Sasuke, thankfully and expectedly, ignored her and she returned the favor.

Divide and conquer was probably best with her teammates right now. And honestly? She had genuinely no idea how to approach the Uchiha boy. Sakura and Naruto were able to keep blundering past the boy’s defenses despite any rejection, but Keiho did **_not_ **have the mental fortitude or patience or unprovoked confidence to put up with constant rejection and disdain from a child she’d hoped to never interact with. Sasuke was a bitter, insecure traumatized kid who deserved all kinds of empathy and needed therapy. And probably some home cooked meals and to be showered in kittens and forced to relax for a day. He’d gone through terrible things that made her stomach curl and her heart ache. 

But he was also a waspish little shit who bit anyone who tried to get too close. 

She understood that reaction! She really did. She didn't blame him for having it. Keiho, on **Bad Days** , would rather go for someone’s soft bits than deal with something as terrifying as letting them near _her_ vulnerabilities. After the kind of fucked up betrayal he experienced she emphasized!

But Keiho wasn’t sure she had the emotional energy to even begin considering how to start unpacking all that or plan how to navigate her way through his emotional landmines enough to interact with him or even worse _befriend him_. She was happy to put it on the back burner in the _figure out later_ category.

Thankfully, she had other distractions.

Sakura kept looking over at her enviously, Keiho noted. They had switched seats. The girl was now in Keiho's old seat beside Shigeru. The boy caught her looking and smiled at her in an almost apology, eyes drifting from his teammate’s intense stare and back to her. Keiho gave him a small shrug in response. Honestly, Sakura was behaving fairly relaxed so far, considering the gritted teeth and murder coming from some directions. Any girl who got paired with Sasuke would have been doomed to a similar fate.

Then Jonin began to come in, distracting even the most devoted fan.

Beside her, she could practically feel Naruto vibrating with excitement as he looked over the proceedings wide eyed. A brief glance told her all she needed to know. Only nine Jonin, which meant, like in the original timeline, it’d be a long wait for Kakashi to arrive. She watched the sorting with interest, each team leaving with their instructor when called. The only highlights were Iruka’s annoyance, visible in the way his he frowned for a few quick microseconds and forced the smile that didn't dimple his cheek or cause the crinkles to appear around his deep brown eyes, when he had to skip Team Seven and the identity of Team Nine’s sensei.

“Team Nine, Hamasaki Rokuro, Haruno Sakura, Akiyama Shigeru, under Suzukaze Himuka.”

She was a sweet faced woman with white hair and a scar that twisted from her left ear down her face and across her throat. She stepped forward to greet her new students, beaming and looking startlingly young with what looked like a brand new vest and fresh uniform. 

Keiho had no idea who she was. 

The sight of her ushering her team out of the room though made Keiho's stomach twist with the suppressed emotions she had to swallow back. 

Keiho knew failing the Academy test wasn't actually the _end_ of a shinobi career. She knew Kakashi had stretched the truth about exactly how many could pass. She'd read the graduation logs in the library. But Sakura _could_ fail and there were already so many factors and plans Keiho needed to now make. Sakura's future wasn't actually her responsibility. There was no one but herself to answer to for it. 

And _yet_. 

That 'yet' is what got her.

It being _stolen_ was somehow her fault even if she couldn't figure out what changed beyond her mere existence. She'd need to do something to ensure the girl reached her full potential. Even without the complicated issue of just how much these changes were and were not Keiho's direct fault, and her responsibility to fix, Sakura’s healing abilities were a _necessity_ for a successful future.

The thought made her anxiety bubble up threateningly under her skin. Her fingers tingled and she started to tap the desk in a meaningless rhythm to relieve some of the energy. 

Naruto, with the other teams gone, stopped holding back.

"Iruka-sensei!" the boy shouted. "What's going on? Where's our sensei?"

Iruka sighed, but it was pretty clear from the way he didn't scold Naruto, _he_ also wasn't pleased with the delay. His expression was in something calm and smiling though it still lacked the telltale crinkles of a true Iruka Smile and the dimples that marked Genuine Joy.

When he spoke it was in that low pleasant voice that just seemed infused with warmth that made him so easy to like as a teacher and he used to calm students. "Something must have held him up. He was advised of the meeting time as all the team leaders were, but Jonin are the elite of the village for a reason. It's possible he was held up by an unexpected request. We'll just need to wait for him, alright?"

Naruto huffed, but settled back seemingly soothed for now.

Keiho doubted that would last though. 

"Sensei," she said, drawing Iruka's attention. "What's our Jonin sensei's name?"

Even Sasuke seemed to perk up, as much as _he_ ever did, at that.

"Yeah! Yeah! What's their name?" Naruto echoed, brightening.

Iruka seemed to smile automatically at the joy in Naruto's voice, a true one shown by the single dimple and the small crease next to his elft eyes, and made a point of looking at the paper, though Keiho was sure he'd memorized all the class's assignments by now.

"Hatake Kakashi-san," Iruka answered and Keiho nodded.

"Ah. Thank you, Sensei," she said automatically and settled in her seat. A small knot in her chest relaxed at the name. _That,_ at least, was the same. A small part of her had been worried about another, much more siginificant, divergence being why she'd been assigned. 

That also confirmed they'd be in for a long wait.

"Eh," Naruto said, leaning his head to the side and looking at her through narrowed eyes. "Do you know him Sato-chan?"

Keiho paused, realizing that she may not be acting as subtle as she hoped. She considered the question. Both Iruka, who looked mildly curious, and Sasuke, who was doing his best to not seem like he was paying attention, were also waiting on her response. 

She held it out a little more, a long buried instinct putting its way forward.

"Nope," she said cheerfully, popping the word and feeling a little maliciously gleeful to see how Naruto deflated and Sasuke huffed turning away. She smiled to herself and looked towards Iruka who was looking a little amused himself. Ah, a good expresison.

"Do you know him, Sensei?"

Instantly, focus shifted to Iruka who stiffened, looking rather weak at the sparkly eyed expression he received from Naruto's direction.

"Ah, well, I don't really know Kakashi-san very well." Iruka said, doing the same gesture Naruto had early, rubbing the back of his neck. "He's a very skilled shinobi. He takes good care of his teammates. He also gives surprisingly good advice."

The last part was said as almost a private joke to himself.

Naruto was practically glowing. "Is he strong? Super strong? Stronger than you?"

Iruka laughed a little at that. A smile one that was more of a little huffing noise. "I would say he's strong. Definitely stronger than me, though we haven't had the chance to spar. He was the Yondaime's apprentice, if I remember right."

Even Sasuke visibly took interest in that piece of information.

She was fairly certain Team Seven had not come into that information before meeting their sensei. She was also now sure that Iruka had definitely looked him up even before tea time with the Sandaime.

"Iruka-sensei seems quite knowledgeable," Keiho said innocently just to see and was rewarded with a nervous laugh, his eyes skittering away from her, and another back of the neck rub. She made sure to memorize the flustered look on Iruka's face. It was cute.

He cleared his throat, straightening and coughed once.

"Ah, perhaps. I'm sure Kakashi-san will tell you plenty about himself when you meet. For now let's just wait quietly."

"I want to hear more about the Yondaime!" Naruto whined and was soon caught up in a friendly not quite argument with Iruka that quickly devolved in a impromptu lecture. Keiho settled back in her chair for the long wait.

⊀~⊁

Kakashi made them wait hours. _As in plural._ Keiho hadn't been certain how long they'd have to wait. She'd been assuming an hour or so given the immediacy of the meeting. 

He made them wait _two and a half hours_.

At the one hour mark, Iruka stopped being effective at calming Naruto. If only because at this point, it was clear _Iruka_ was starting to get fed up and the narrow eyed dangerous expression creeping on his face was indicating some major judgement on his part. Thirty minutes later, the man had left, grimacing and apologetic, to start his shift at the Mission Desk with a promise to send someone down if he discovered Kakashi had been deployed without warning and a promise from them to wait here until they were relieved. 

Waiting, especially with the vague memory that Kakashi was spending the time spying on them, was the worst thing Keiho could endure right now. Her nerves were already being pushed to the brink and she felt taut, ants pressing against her too tight skin and the knot in her stomach transmigrated into a solid iron ball. She had cycled through annoyed and afraid and numb and straight into the anger portion of her acceptance with the sudden changes in her life.

“He’s late.” Naruto grumbled, his head stuck outside the door. He huffed as he pulled back in and repeated the question, in a slightly different form, he'd been demanding on and off for an hour. At this point it was more a statement though without the expectation of answer. “Why is our sensei so damn late!"

Keiho shrugged, wanting to curse a little as well.

"All of the other teams have gone with their senseis and even Iruka-sensei already left…" He continued, crossing his arms and full on pouting.

Sasuke, as he had the entire time, remained silent and simply stared into space. 

Then Naruto did something that made Keiho's heart cheer and the vindictive part of her start to salivate. 

He went to inspect the erasers on the chalkboard, tapping them until he found one with an acceptable cloud of chalk. Once he found one he approved of he grabbed Iruka's stool and scampered over to the door with obvious intent.

"Hehehehehe," the boy said, giggling to himself as he staged the prank and hopping down with a satisfied expression. "That's what you get for being late."

"Wait, Naruto," Keiho said as Sasuke scoffed. 

"Pfft," Sasuke said derisively. "Like a Jonin would fall for such a stupid booby trap."

Naruto scowled, but ignored him, turning to Keiho instead, his expression was stiff, clearly expecting a scolding.

Keiho probably should have. Tried to keep the timelines as similar as possible before she considered how to adjust them to deal with her place in it.

But Keiho was _annoyed_.

And _pissed_.

And had been sitting here for _two and a half hours unable to unwind from a frankly horrible day._

"Do you still have glitter leftover from what you did to the thrift shop on Main Street?"

Naruto looked as if he was going to burst, either into tears or laughter, while Sasuke actually lifted his chin from his crossed fingers to what amounted to a scandalized expression from him.

"He's a Jonin," Sasuke repeated, looking at her with dull dark eyes. 

Keiho shrugged as Naruto happily jumped back up to grab the eraser and start pulling items out of his pockets.

"And he left us waiting for almost three hours," Keiho chirped, smiling at him wrathfully. "Are you content with that Uchiha-san?"

Sasuke hesitated, looking almost conflicted with his normal glower taking on a strangely pained quality, which Keiho suspected meant he was genuinely tempted. In the end though, his expression cleared and he scoffed, looking away but didn't comment further. Keiho nodded and turned away, accepting the refusal with as much grace as she could. Things couldn't be that easy. Naruto was repositioning the eraser before he hopped over to her side a large grin on his face.

When the door moved the eraser fell and landed on the silvery mess of hair below it. Just like it had in the original.

Only this time it was accompanied with a small explosion of glitter all over the hair, the man, and the door.

"HAHAHAHA!" Naruto howled. "You fell for it! You fell for it!"

A feeling of almost perfect calm and bone deep, petty satisfaction swelled up in Keiho's chest and she smiled serenely.

Sasuke looked pretty much the same, but he was actually looking at Kakashi and there might have been a bit more of a smirk than a scowl to his face.

Kakashi for a minuscule moment stilled which Keiho interpreted as surprise, before he fell into a languid body language, scooping up the eraser and inspecting it with a lazy look over.

"Hmm," he said cupping his chin in his free hand. "How can I put this? As for my first impression…?"

Naruto started to swallow back his wheezing laughter to see what the man would say.

"I don't like you."

⊀~⊁

The glitter glimmered like little hidden gems in the overgrown forest of hair Kakashi had. Keiho smiled from her spot on the stairs, bloodthirst sated for now. Beside her Naruto was still letting loose a stray giggle every time Kakashi shifted and more glitter drifted off him. Not even the man's aloof response and being forced to head to a secondary location could completely kill his mood.

They had settled down for now and Keiho had her first real look at the Copy-Nin who'd instantly fled to the roof after dropping his bomb (and being bombed).

He was _tall_. He towered over them even with his terrible posture and he was surprisingly broad despite his whippy build. The bits of his skin that were visible, less than some Regency maiden at her first ball, was a creamy color, surprisingly pretty and untouched for someone who'd spent their life in such a violent profession. His face shape was actually visible through the thick mask, revealing a nice jawline and long nose. His one visible eyes was a dark gray that flirted with black but picked up color in the sunlight. 

His posture was relaxed and casual and overall there wasn't much to make him stand out in a crowd, especially not with the peculiarities of most shinobi. He looked like a man, a relatively harmless large man with a terrible posture. 

He was young though. A fact that struck her seeing him now.

He was her sister's age from before...before **everything**. 

Keiho squirmed at the thought looking away.

"Well, let's have you guys introduce yourselves," Kakashi said and Naruto answered.

"Huh, what do you wanna know?"

"How about your likes, dislikes, hobbies, your dreams for the future and things like that."

The conversation played out pretty much identical, only missing the beats of where Sakura would have spoken. Similarly, the introductions hadn't changed either. Hearing Naruto's determination and Sasuke's declaration were _different_ in person though.

Her throat hurt as Sasuke spoke and she had to look away from him.

"...and finally the girl," Kakashi's drawl interrupted her thoughts before they could spiral too darkly. It made her, reluctantly, grateful, even if she did twitch a little at the address.

"I'm Sato Keiho," she said and paused as if to consider the question so she could get her bearings back. Every team bonding exercise, college meetup, and dating site had prepared her for the next part. "I enjoy reading. I dislike coffee. My hobbies are bookbinding and calligraphy. Dreams? Hm. I suppose my dream is to make Chunin before I’m twenty and join the Barrier Team.”

Boring, to the point, and safe.

“Barrier Team?” Naruto asked, face scrunching up.

Keiho nodded. “They maintain the detection barrier surrounding Konoha. Most newbie Chunin serve there temporarily at least at one point in their career. Permanent members though are more involved at maintaining and updating the seals that set up the barrier. They’re supposedly some of the few remnants of the Uzushio Style still left in practice.”

“Are you interested in fuinjutsu?” It was Kakashi this time and he cut in before she could continue further. She paused and looked back at him wondering if that was a little too close to secret information. Keiho realized he was giving her an similar accessing look he’d given Sasuke earlier.

“A little,” she admitted, mixing in the truth, since she doubted he would believe lies, and continued in a sheepish tone. It was her first time discussing it with anyone. She’d been waiting until she was a Genin to pursue the subject actively for fear of standing out, but since she was already fucked...

“I have a really rudimentary understanding though. The Academy doesn’t cover them and without a Master it would be hard to start. I started calligraphy because my mother recommended it as a good way to begin training for it. She took a few classes to help her with the ones medics learn.”

Kakashi nodded with a mood she couldn’t quite place.

Naruto seemed confused by the discussion and muttered some of the unfamiliar words to himself. Keiho kept her face placid but was pleased that the seed of interest had been planted.

“Good! The three of you are very distinctive and interesting! We’ll have a mission tomorrow!”

Keiho leaned back, pleased to have the attention off her and let the moment run its course. It felt like a cutscene in a game. One of those unskippable ones she’d scene a hundred times before, leaving only the distant familiarity and desire for it to be over. She could tell she was reaching the end of her batteries. She couldn’t even bring herself to fake surprise at Kakashi’s threat and dark chuckles, though Naruto reacted enough for both of them.

Kakashi really was _Dramatic_ with a fully earned capital letter.

She took the paper outlining their "survival training" with a low feeling of dread and watched Kakashi disappear in a swirl of leaves that left behind a small pile of glitter. She clutched the paper tightly and offered Naruto a wave and Sasuke a nod before she was finally blissfully free.

⊀~⊁

“Welcome ba--Ah! Hot tea! Careful!” 

Despite the warning, nothing fell as Keiho threw herself in her mother’s lap, burying her face in the woman’s warm shoulder, inhaling the comforting mix of medicinal plants and lotion that always lingered on her. 

Her mother laughed lightly, the warm sound drifting though Keiho like a hot gulp of tea, meaning safety and _home_ , and a hand started lightly carding through her hair, unknotting curls with expert gentleness. There was a small click of porcelain against porcelain and the other hand adjusted Keiho’s haphazardly thrown legs to a more comfortable position, before beginning to rub up and down her back.

“Ah, tough day?” her mother said, voice low and all soothing.

The last of the tension cut out of Keiho, making her go limp. She pressed closer, allowing a bit of childish whine to enter her voice and the true distress of the long afternoon.

“Long,” she summarized.

"How are your teammates?" 

"Ugh."

This triggered another laugh and then a small hum as her mother adjusted their position, leaning back into a more comfortable one.

"That bad, huh?"

"...unexpected," Keiho said, relenting a bit, and leaned her face up from the now slightly damp shoulder. Although it was a reluctant move. "Hide?"

"With Baa-chan. Keisuke took him over for a visit."

Keiho settled back with a sigh and the hair petting resumed.

"We can talk later," Her mother said, an offering.

Keiho nodded, closing her eyes and sinking into the much needed comfort.


End file.
